Egyptian president arrives in Moscow for talksMOSCOW, Nov 1 (AFP) Nov 01, 2006Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak arrived in Moscow on Wednesday for a three-day visit during which he was set to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and discuss arms sales and nuclear power.

Mubarak landed at Vnukovo airport in southern Moscow.

The visit "is of great importance given the situation in the Middle East, which unfortunately continues to deteriorate," said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Saltanov, who greeted Mubarak.

Saltanov said Egypt was "a key partner for Russia in the region," the news agency ITAR-TASS reported.

In an interview with the official daily Rossiiskaya Gazeta published on Wednesday, Mubarak said he and Putin had common ground on their views on democracy.

"There is no universal democratic model, since each people can implement the democracy that corresponds to the nature of that people, its culture, its characteristics and its customs," Mubarak said.

"I was very pleased when President Putin talked about Russia's democracy a few months ago. I am sure that Putin wanted to say the same thing," Mubarak added.